Latest news with #TheSaltLakeTribune
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Yahoo
BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff accused of sexually assaulting woman in 2023 in new lawsuit
This article contains depictions of alleged sexual assault. BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff has been accused of sexual assault in a new lawsuit filed Wednesday, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. A Salt Lake County woman filed an anonymous lawsuit Wednesday that accused Retzlaff of sexually assaulting her in November 2023. The woman also reported the incident to the police, though Retzlaff has not been criminally charged. In her lawsuit, the woman alleges Retzlaff assaulted her in 2023 after they had first connected on social media about a month earlier. The woman and a friend had gone to Retzlaff's home to hang out one night, per the report, and the woman stayed back after her friend left. Retzlaff and the woman then started watching a movie in his room and eventually started kissing. The woman said in her lawsuit she "did not want to do anything more" than that, but Retzlaff continued to try to "escalate things." Retzlaff allegedly tried touching her sexually and told her to give him oral sex. After the woman "reacted in a way that made Retzlaff angry," the lawsuit claims, Retzlaff "started to shout at her." The woman tried to call someone on her phone, but realized it was dead and started to charge it. As she was lying on his bed waiting for her phone to power up, the woman said Retzlaff briefly fell asleep. Eventually, the woman said Retzlaff woke up again and started forcefully kissing and touching her. She repeatedly told him to stop, per the report, but Retzlaff continued and ended up having sex with her. The woman went to a hospital a few days later to have a rape kit examination done, according to the lawsuit. She reported the incident to the police, too, but initially did not name Retzlaff out of fear. She later told Provo police Retzlaff's name after an officer asked her who he was because 'someone else filed a complaint against a football player, and the police wanted to see if it was the same person.' That same officer later encouraged her not to do anything about it, per the report, as 'sexual assault victims never get justice.' Neither Retzlaff's family, BYU police nor Provo police responded to The Tribune's requests for comment. The woman is suing Retzlaff for alleged battery, assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Retzlaff transferred to BYU in 2023, and he led the program last season as its starting quarterback. The 21-year-old threw for 2,947 yards with 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while leading the Cougars to an 11-2 record. The school is run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and holds all students to a strict honor code that includes prohibiting premarital and extramarital sex whether or not they are members of the Mormon church. Retzlaff is the first Jewish starting quarterback at BYU. The school has punished athletes in the past for violating these rules. In 2011, Brandon Davies was dismissed from the basketball team after he admitted to having sexual relations in violation of the honor code. It's unclear if Retzlaff will face discipline from the school.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Yahoo
BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff accused of sexually assaulting woman in 2023 in new lawsuit
This article contains depictions of alleged sexual assault. BYU quarterback Jake Retzlaff has been accused of sexual assault in a new lawsuit filed on Wednesday, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. A Salt Lake County woman filed an anonymous lawsuit on Wednesday that accused Retzlaff of sexually assaulting her in November 2023. The woman also reported the incident to the police, though Retzlaff has not been criminally charged. In her lawsuit, the woman said that Retzlaff assaulted her in 2023 after they had first connected on social media about a month earlier. The woman and a friend had gone to Retzlaff's home to hang out one night, per the report, and the woman stayed back after her friend left. Retzlaff and the woman then started watching a movie in his room and eventually started kissing. The woman said in her lawsuit that she "did not want to do anything more" than that, but Retzlaff continued to try to "escalate things." Retzlaff allegedly tried touching her sexually and told her to give him oral sex. After the woman "reacted in a way that made Retzlaff angry," the lawsuit claims, Retzlaff "started to shout at her." The woman tried to call someone on her phone, but realized it was dead and started to charge it. As she was lying on his bed waiting for her phone to power up, the woman said Retzlaff briefly fell asleep. Eventually, the woman said that Retzlaff woke up again and started forcefully kissing and touching her. She repeatedly told him to stop, per the report, but Retzlaff continued and ended up having sex with her. The woman went to a hospital a few days later to have a rape kit examination done. She reported the incident to the police, too, but initially did not name Retzlaff out of fear. She later told Provo police Retzlaff's name after an officer asked her who he was because 'someone else filed a complaint against a football player, and the police wanted to see if it was the same person.' That same officer later encouraged her not to do anything about it, per the report, as 'sexual assault victims never get jsutice.' Neither Retzlaff's family, BYU police nor Provo police responded to The Tribune's requests for comment. The woman is suing Retzlaff for alleged battery, assault and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Retzlaff transferred in to BYU in 2023, and he led the program last season as its starting quarterback. The 21-year-old threw for 2,947 yards with 20 touchdowns and 12 interceptions while leading the Cougars to an 11-2 record. Retzlaff is the first Jewish starting quarterback at BYU, too. The school is run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and holds all students to a strict honor code that includes prohibiting premarital and extramarital sex whether or not they are a member of the Mormon church. The school has punished athletes in the past for violating these rules. In 2011, for example, Brandon Davies was dismissed from the basketball team after he admitted to having sexual relations in violation of the honor code. It's unclear if Retzlaff will face discipline from the school.
Newsweek
16-05-2025
- Newsweek
Utah Death Row Inmate Gets New Trial After Decades in Prison
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Utah Supreme Court has ruled that "numerous constitutional violations" during the trial and sentencing of Douglas Stewart Carter, a man who has spent decades on death row, merit a new trial. In a unanimous ruling on Thursday, the state's highest court upheld a lower court's decision that police and prosecutors had violated Carter's constitutional rights. The Context Carter, 69, was sentenced to death in 1985 after a jury found him guilty of murdering Eva Oleson, the aunt of a former Provo police chief who was found stabbed and shot in her home. Although no physical evidence linked him to the crime scene, Carter, a Black man, was convicted based on a written confession and two witnesses who said he bragged about killing Oleson, who was white. Carter argued his confession was coerced, and the witnesses, two immigrants without legal status, later said police and prosecutors had pressured them to falsely implicate Carter. The Utah Supreme Court in session on August 8, 2023, in Salt Lake City. The Utah Supreme Court in session on August 8, 2023, in Salt Lake City. Francisco Kjolseth/The Salt Lake Tribune via AP What To Know The Utah Supreme Court sent Carter's case to a lower court for review in 2019 after the witnesses, Epifanio Tovar and his wife, Lucia, signed sworn declarations saying police and prosecutors had coached them to lie in court, threatened to deport them or their son if they did not implicate Carter in Oleson's murder. They said they were also instructed by police to lie about financial assistance they had received from police during Carter's trial. Judge Derek Pullan ordered a new trial in 2022, saying the witness testimonies and police misconduct prejudiced Carter's original trial. The Utah attorney general's office appealed, leading to the High Court's decision on Thursday. "There is no question that these numerous constitutional violations—suppressing evidence, suborning perjury, and knowingly failing to correct false testimony—prejudiced Carter at both his trial and sentencing," Justice Paige Petersen wrote in the opinion. "It is rare to see a case involving multiple instances of intentional misconduct by two different police officers—one of them the lead investigator on the case—and a prosecutor. But that is what the postconviction court found here. "Two officers instructed important prosecution witnesses to lie not only about receiving benefits from the police, but also, in Epifanio's case, to fabricate a statement intended to show that Carter harbored a premeditated intent to commit rape on the night of the murder. "Epifanio went along with the coaching and perjured himself repeatedly. And the prosecutor stood by while Epifanio denied receiving any benefits, knowing the testimony was false, and did nothing to correct it." The postconviction court vacated Carter's conviction and sentence and ordered a new trial "because it determined these violations prejudiced Carter within the meaning of [the Postconviction Remedies Act]," Petersen said. "Its 'confidence [was] undermined in both Carter's conviction and sentence.' So is ours. We affirm." What People Are Saying Carter's attorney Eric Zuckerman said in a statement, per The Associated Press: "Mr. Carter has spent more than forty years behind bars because of an unconstitutional conviction rooted in police and prosecutorial misconduct — including the suborning of perjury before a jury of his peers. "We are gratified that both the trial court and the Utah Supreme Court have validated Mr. Carter's claims. But no ruling can restore the four decades of freedom the state of Utah unjustly took from him." Madison McMicken, a spokesperson for Utah Attorney General Derek Brown, said: "We extend our hearts and sympathies to the family of Eva Olesen, who have sought justice for her murder the last 40 years. We are disappointed the Olesen family does not yet have a resolution in this case." What Happens Next Carter remains in prison while he awaits a new trial, his attorney said.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Doctors told a dad his daughter would never walk on her own. He built a way to get her on the trails.
LJ Wilde always felt he one day would use his background in mechanical engineering to enrich his daughter Luci's life. "I didn't know what for," Wilde said. "I just felt it." What he didn't know was just how many lives he eventually would change. Two years after she was born, doctors told the Hyrum, Utah, resident that Luci would likely never be able to walk on her own due to a rare genetic disorder, The Salt Lake Tribune reports. When he learned this, his mind immediately raced to the challenges his family might face in the future. Coming from a family that prioritized spending time in the mountains and outdoors, one of the biggest concerns was how Luci's mobility would affect their ability to continue those adventures together, especially when she got bigger. For a while, Luci's challenges didn't stop his family from getting outside. Wilde would carry her in a pack or, at times, firefighter-style over his shoulders. That is, until they were hiking up Blacksmith Fork Canyon, outside of Hyrum, when Luci was about 7 and she started saying she was uncomfortable. For the first time, the family had to turn around and cut the hike short. As Wilde made his way down the trail, Luci resting on his shoulders, his thoughts raced with questions. Would this mean Luci no longer could join the family on hikes? Would it mean the end of hiking altogether for his family? "I thought both options sucked, quite frankly," Wilde said. "So, I was just like, 'I'm going to change this right now.' Before I was even back to the car, I had in my mind how I wanted to do it." When Wilde got home, he immediately began sketching ideas for a tandem hiking cart that would allow his daughter to comfortably enjoy the outdoors. He envisioned a chair-type design that could be pulled by another person. In the summer of 2019, Wilde worked on designing what he eventually named the Cascade. Then life happened, and the parts he had created for the cart sat disassembled in his garage for three years. During that time, his family didn't go on a single hike together. One afternoon, he decided he didn't want to keep looking at his failed experiment and decided to take it to the dump. But something made him stop. "I got halfway outside with it, and I just got hit with a ton of bricks," Wilde said. "It was just like, 'That's a really bad idea. Just finish it.'" So, in early 2023, Wilde hired a welder to assemble the parts he had designed, hoping the cart would be ready for Luci to use on an upcoming trip to Grand Teton National Park. It would be. The Cascade looks like a heavily modified mountain bike that was cut in half, with a large tire capable of tackling rugged terrain, a chair for someone to ride on and a harness that attaches to the person pulling the cart. In June of that year, Wilde and his family went on their first hike together in three years to the park's Hidden Falls, with Wilde pulling Luci in his invention as they wound through huckleberry bushes. From that moment on, Wilde knew the device would eliminate many barriers for his family. "I was thinking that it's good to be outdoors," Luci, now 12, said of her first excursion. Only minutes into the hike, a woman pushing a wheelchair on the trail approached the family and asked about the Cascade. "She comes up to me and is like, 'I need to know what that's called,'" Wilde said. "And I said, 'I don't have a name for it. I just made it in my garage. And she says, 'Well, would you make another one?'" The prospect of commercializing something he made for his daughter seemed far-fetched to Wilde, so he declined, apologized to the woman and went on his way. It wasn't the only encounter he had that day with someone who was interested in the Cascade. "The whole time we hiked," Wilde said, "we almost couldn't hike, because we would go a little ways, and then somebody would stop us and be like, 'Oh my gosh, what is that thing? I have a neighbor. I have a niece.'" Still, Wilde couldn't help but remember all the time and hard work that went into creating the first one. When he got home and couldn't stop thinking about all the people he met on the hike and the lives he could help, something shifted inside him. That summer, he and his wife, Jana, decided it would be right for him to quit his job to focus on making the Cascade a reality for other families. At the time, Jana was pregnant with the couple's sixth child. "I had health insurance," Wilde said. "I had an income that was just the same every month. It was comfortable. This is not comfortable, but I love every minute of it because of the people that we serve. It's not just the people that we serve, it's my own family. It's my own daughter." In March 2024, Wilde launched his North Logan outdoor accessibility company, Huckleberry Hiking, and has since sold more than 1,000 Cascades to families in similar situations to his, across all 50 states and in 22 countries. Within the first 24 hours of Huckleberry Hiking's launch, nearly 400 people bought the cart. Wilde said the families he's met and the stories he's heard are what kept him going, even after facing multiple bumps in the road. "I wasn't OK with the status quo," Wilde said. "And then I marched forward, with my wife kind of pushing me from behind. And then an army of people joined us and just facilitated the rest to be able to happen." Huckleberry Hiking will be moving to a larger facility in Cache Valley this month to produce the Cascades. Its 800-square-foot space in North Logan has become too small. Looking ahead, Wilde envisions his business expanding to address other accessibility needs across various industries. His next goal is to add an electric assist to the Cascade, making steep hills easier for the person pulling the cart. "I just know the barriers it's broken for us," Wilde said. "It's literally taken limits away. It's really hard to find the limits anymore. We can just go with her wherever we want to go. If we can hike there, I can get her there." When 14-year-old Phippin Tingey first rode in a Cascade cart on a mountain trail, he felt like he was flying. "Like you're Zelda going through the woods trying to hunt for monsters and trying to defeat them," he said. "Or feeling like I'm free, and I don't have to do anything." Phippin, who has a genetic disease that caused him to lose mobility in his legs, said that when his condition progressed in early 2023, he began experiencing cabin fever. Hiking with friends and family had always been one of his favorite activities, but due to his size and condition, it was becoming increasingly difficult for him to join. "I want to go outside," Phippin said, "and do things." Around the same time, Wilde was gauging interest in his invention and shared information within Cache Valley about allowing others to try it. Phippin's mother, Emily, was immediately interested. She soon discovered Wilde lived in their Hyrum neighborhood, and he brought over a Cascade for Phippin to try in their front yard. After seeing how affordable and useful the Cascade was, the Tingeys became one of the first 50 people to purchase a prototype. Since then, Phippin and his family have been going on weekly Friday hikes, something Emily said has brought a noticeable shift in their energy and family dynamic. "It was huge for us," Emily said. "It brought a lot of happiness and quality of life back." And Phippin said the cart has helped break his cabin fever. "Being able to catch up with other kids in my wheelchair and in the cart," he said, "makes me feel like I belong with other kids." The first time Angela Dugan took the Cascade cart on a hike with her 17-year-old daughter, Kaelyn, who has cerebral palsy, the wind was knocked out of her. Not just because she was hiking uphill in Boulder, Colorado, where Wilde was on a tour in 2024 with the Cascade to reach more families, but also because of how much she knew the cart would change her family's life. "It was so important," Dugan said, "for me to feel that again with my kid." Dugan said she had tried every accessible hiking chair on the market for Kaelyn, whom she described as a daredevil interested in trying almost anything outdoors. Most of the chairs didn't make the cut. They were either too clunky, couldn't handle rough terrain, or were too expensive. While some hiking chairs can cost as much as $10,000, the Cascade cart is normally priced at $2,500. When she heard about the Cascade during Wilde's tour, she bought it on the spot. "I never do that," Dugan said. "I always trial. I always demo." The cart offered everything that her adventurous daughter would want: It worked well in the snow, it worked well on cliffsides, and it could be used for just out and about town. It also lifted Kaelyn up to the level of others who are standing, making her feel more involved and included in her day-to-day life. "Now, I have a teenager that's at the height of everybody else," Dugan said. "People don't have to look down. People aren't touching her hair. People aren't leaning on her. People aren't patting her on the head like a puppy, because of a piece of equipment that was thoughtfully designed." The cart has also improved Kaelyn's condition, Dugan said. Since her daughter, who is blind and nonverbal, has been able to go out into nature and have more sensory experiences, she's been talking more. "It was," Dugan said, "perfectly timed." Now, Dugan is spending her time trying to build a "Huckleberry Herd," advocating for the carts to be available to rent at various outdoor recreation areas, including national parks. She plans to host a backpacking trip soon with others who use the cart. "We're going to peacefully protest," she said. "We are building a different type of community I didn't think was going to be possible for a kid like mine. Some of us are tired of waiting for someone else to do it." Wilde didn't wait. He took action. And now doors are opening for his child and hundreds—someday, perhaps, thousands—of other kids. This story was produced by The Salt Lake Tribune and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Yahoo
Will Ralph Menzies' dementia keep him from a firing squad? Attorneys make final argument
Ralph Leroy Menzies during a competency hearing in 3rd District Court in West Jordan on Monday, Nov 18, 2024. (Pool photo by Rick Egan/The Salt Lake Tribune) After nearly 40 years on death row, a judge will soon determine whether Ralph Menzies' dementia is advanced enough to spare him from being executed by firing squad. Lawyers for the 67-year-old convicted murderer say his brain is so damaged he can't form a 'rational understanding' of why the state is pursuing the death penalty — prosecutors for the Utah Attorney General's Office say while Menzies might be impaired, he is still 'clearly competent.' Attorneys for both sides met at the 3rd District Courthouse in West Jordan on Wednesday to make their final oral arguments before Judge Matthew Bates, who will issue a ruling sometime in the next 60 days. It marked what is likely one of the final hearings to determine whether Menzies is competent enough to face execution, the end of a monthslong process that included testimony from numerous medical experts and the victim's family. The competency hearing began in November, but due to scheduling and logistical conflicts, final oral arguments were pushed to May 7. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Menzies was brought into the West Jordan courtroom at about 2 p.m. Wednesday. The death row inmate sat in a wheelchair with oxygen tubes running up his nose during the hearing, sporting a scruffy, somewhat unkempt white beard and short, receding brownish-grey hair. He would occasionally lean over to speak with members of his legal team, but otherwise sat in silence during the roughly hour-long hearing. Menzies was sentenced to death in 1988 after he kidnapped and murdered Maurine Hunsaker, a 26-year-old gas station clerk. Menzies took her up Big Cottonwood Canyon, where she was later found tied to a tree with her throat slashed. In recent years, Menzies' health has deteriorated, his attorneys say. After falling several times in prison, he was diagnosed with vascular dementia, where the brain's blood flow is disrupted, leading to memory loss and declining cognitive function. An MRI exam showed Menzies' brain tissue is deteriorating, and his balance is fraught, causing him to fall several times each month. According to his attorneys, Menzies is so impaired by his dementia that he does not have a 'rational understanding' of why he is facing execution, meaning he can't make the link between his crime and the punishment. That means society's goal of retribution and deterrence — the foundational goals of the death penalty — aren't being fulfilled, they say. Per Utah code, and U.S. Supreme Court case law, that means he should be deemed too incompetent to face an execution, his lawyers say. On Wednesday, Menzies' attorney Lindsey Layer pointed to MRI results that showed the death row inmate had 'the highest level' of brain damage, with parts of it atrophied and filled with fluid. There are also the physical signs, backed by the medical experts hired by Menzies' attorneys who found him to be incompetent. He struggles with basic activities, Layer said, like forgetting to bathe, flush the toilet or renew medication, and often has issues with his personal finances and the prison commissary (a store for inmates). 'His inability to engage in what is a fairly simple process of renewing his medication,' said Layer, 'demonstrates his inability to engage in that analytical thought that is necessary to have a rational understanding of the state's reasoning for his execution.' That rational understanding was at the heart of Layer's argument, and she repeatedly underscored the difference between awareness and understanding. 'Mr. Menzies can understand the concrete things,' Layer said. 'He can understand, 'I was sentenced to death and the state is going to kill me.' But what he can't understand is the how or why.' Daniel Boyer with the Utah Attorney General's Office pushed back on the standard of competency outlined by Layer, telling the judge Menzies simply needs to understand why the state is pursuing his execution. If the court agrees with that standard, Boyer said, 'he's clearly competent.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Boyer encouraged Bates to listen to recordings of Menzies' recent phone conversations, which show 'his ability to converse, to problem solve' — and Menzies' use of his prison-issued tablet. 'I think the tablet is a good indicator of his competency,' Boyer said, noting that he can buy items from the commissary, check his finances, and access prison rules and policies. 'This showed an extraordinarily high level of functioning.' Matt Hunsaker, Maurine's son, gave his first statement to the court since the competency hearing began last year. In the decades since his mother's murder, he's attended hearing after hearing, read countless rulings and court orders, and advocated nonstop for Menzies' execution. It's the end of the road for Hunsaker. If Bates finds Menzies incompetent to be executed, he won't protest the ruling. 'I don't envy you for the decision you have to make,' Hunsaker told Bates. 'I just want to put it out there — this man took my mom from a gas station where she was trying to support her family.' Speaking to reporters outside of the courtroom, Hunsaker repeated a familiar sentiment — he's tired of this. 'It's taken a toll on the whole family. There is some closure possibly ahead, but 39 years, two months, nine days, that's a long time,' he said. 'I've got a grandbaby now, it's time to shift the focus of wasting time on this, and bring a new little girl into the family.' Hunsaker didn't want to speculate on how Bates will rule, telling Utah News Dispatch 'there's good arguments on both sides.' 'My personal opinion is he's competent. He knows what he did. It's time to stop with the games. He needs to be executed. And again, I believe this is just a delay tactic,' he said. Bates, while asking several questions during both Menzies' and the state's arguments, offered no indication of how he would rule. He concluded Wednesday's hearing telling attorneys that he'll issue a ruling in the next 60 days. In Utah, death row inmates sentenced before May 2004 had a choice between lethal injection and firing squad. For those sentenced after 2004, the default method of execution is lethal injection, unless the necessary drugs are not available. Firing squads are rare in the U.S. But earlier this year, South Carolina executed two inmates by firing squad — Brad Sigmon and Mikal Mahdi — making it the first state other than Utah to utilize the method in the last several decades. According to the Associated Press, at least 144 civilian prisoners have been executed by firing squad in the U.S. since 1608, almost all of them in Utah.
